Electric grill



March 2l, 1939.

R.F.HENDERSHOT ETAL ELECTRIC GRILL- Filed July 6, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet lffl-......... ..v.'.,.'.......v.v.

L 4 2vu I Ar 11 1 nu ""Immlm ATTO R N EY March 21, 1939.

R. F. HENDERSHOT El' lAL ELECTRIC GRILL 2 'Smeets-sheet 2 Filel July 6,1936 INVENTQ s ATTORNEY .Patented Mari/'21, 19.39

UNITED sTnTEs ELECTRIC GRILL Application July 6,

-1 Claim.

The present invention relates to new and useful improvements inelectrical heating appliances and has more particular reference to anelectric broiler for use in the broiling of meats, fish and the like.

resides in the provision of a device ol? this character which provides anovel arrangement oi the heating elements to insure the most emcientand. a substantially uniform heating of the articles to be broiled. v

Another important object of this invention is to provide an electricbroiler in which there is such a co-relation of the heating elements,aheat refiecting element and a grill member adapted to 5 hold pieces offood that the greatest conservation of heat energy is realized and auniform distribution of the applied heat automatically provided.

Another object of the invention is to provide means for removing thegrill' member which is adapted to hold the food in a convenient mannerand in a manner to obviate the tendency to burn the hands of one whomanipulates the device.

Another robject of this invention is to provide such an yarrangement andconstruction of parts that the manufacture oi. the broiler can becarried on`in a. most economical manner.

In the specications following, wherein an illustrative embodiment o1'this .invention is described, reference is made to the accompanyingdrawings in which Fig. 1 is a sectional longitudinal elevation .of theentire broiler showing with modified lines the outline of the holder forthe food-retaining grill at the top and the pulled out position of atray mounted in the bottom;

Fig. 2 is a transverse section through the entire broiler showing thefood retaining grill in position and showing by modiied lines one of thereflector retaining covers in a. full open position;

Y Fig. 3 isa. cross section looking in the direction o! the arrows atthe line @lf3 in Fig. l, and this figure 'shows the detail oi theelectrical connections to the heating elements and their relativedisposition in the device;

Fig. 4 is a section looking in the direction oi the arrows at the line4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross section looking in the direction of the arrows at theline 5-5 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is an elevation View of the food retaining 5o grill member shownin the open position; and

' Fig. 7 is a cross section view looking in the direction of the arrowsat the line 'I-I of Fig. 6, showing with modified line the grill memberin a closed position. 55 Referring to the drawings, we have disclosedThe primary object of the invention' Robert AF. Hendershot, Arlington,and Edward R. Hughes, Morristown, N. J.

193s. serial No. 89,012r (ci. 21e-19) therein a broiler comprising abase in the form of a. chamber I of sheet metal in which is provided theslide supports 2, 2 for a sliding tray 3.

Mounted on top of this chamber I are two pairs oi hinges 4. These hingesmay be riveted, as 5 shown, or may be spot welded in position. Attachedto each pair oi' hinges d, d (see Fig. 2) is a pair of covers 5. 5 whichare provided at their upper end with a handle knob 5 and a springretaining latch l. Fastened within these covers 10 5, 5 are reectors 8,il, each being in the form of a sheet of metal fastened in position, asshown, having a slightly greater curvature toward the top limit thereofthan toward the bottom.

Referring to Fig. 3, the space enclosed by the 15 reflectors 8, 8 andthe cover"members 5, 5 may conveniently contain 'heat insulatingmaterial which aids in the conservation of the heat energy and preventsits being radiated through the metal of said covers 5, 5. Saidreflectors t, 8 are pro- 20 vided with highly polished inner faces whichare preferably plated with some protective and/or reective coating suchas chromium or the like. Fastened on top of the supporting chamber I,

and near each end thereof, is an upright sup- 25 y porting member 9which, with said covers 5, 5 defines a broiling chamber and is generallyin the form of an inverted U with turned-in lower ends, as'shown, andhas a central longitudinal opening 9 through the top thereof which issuit- 30 able for the admittance of a food-holding grill I0. Saidsupporting member 9 may be regarded as the vertical supporting memberfor the broiling device and rests on top of said chamber I. Fastened ina well-known manner, such as by 35 welding or otherwise, to saidsupporting member 9 yis a pair of U-shaped sheet metal members II II(see Figs. 4 and 5). Attached to said members II, i I is a series ofhooks I2, I2 preferably made of insulating material. 4 With reference toFig. 1 .and Fig. 3, it will be seen that said hooks I2, I2 are held inposition by being passed through holes in said sheet metal members II,II, said hooks I2, I2 being provided with extending ilanges, whichprevent them from 45 passing clear through the holes. Said supportinghooks I2. I2 as shown in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3 are arranged in rows oneither side of the broiling chamber defined by covers 5, 5 andsupporting member Sinisuch a manner that the lower part of the rowsof-,supports are nearer to the center of the broiling chamber than arethe .upper parts of the rows. They are also arranged sothat thesuccessive supporting hooks are nearer one to the other toward thebottom of the row than they 55 are toward the top of the row. All thisensures that there shall be a greater amount of heat from theheatlngelement supported on these hooks directed toward the broiling chambernear the bottom of the chamber than is so directed at the top.

Positioned as shown in Fig. l between the top of said verticalsupporting member 9 and the top said chamber base member I, and fastenedthereto are support members I3, I3 (see Figs. 1 and 2). insulatingsleeves I4, yI4 made of an insulating ceramic or earth are mounted onthe support members I3, I3 in slots I5, I5 into which they may beslipped. Provision is made for riveting a retaining member I6 by meansof the rivets I1, I1 to retain said insulating sleeves I4, I4 inposition in said slots I5, I5. Any convenient method may be resorted tofor mounting said insulating sleeves I4, I4 in said support members I3,I3.

A heating unit comprises an electrical resistance wire, such asnichrome, which is mounted follows:

With reference to Fig. 1, a screw I8 fastens a rigid insulating panel I9to said sheet metal member II (see Fig. 5.)\. Said screw I8 is insulatedfrom member I I byxmeans of an insulating washer 20, asshown in Fig. ,1.Fromj-.saidfiscrew I8` an electrical resistance wire 2I-"isl-fconductedthrough the insulating sleeves I4, I4 aroundfthe ward the bottom of thefood which is to be broiled out the length of the broiler device,as'shownl'in v l than toward the top. Experience has shown that Fig. 1,and so is wound back and forthfuntil it.'

hook members I2, I2 as shown, and back throughis nally connected'to asecond connection 'screw I8', which is a duplicate of the screw-gI1-8'.`Two such resistarfcewires are' mounted,-;asr j shown' in Fig. 2, andthey arepositioned, onereachlsideof. the central chamber in which.isfretained-said food retaining grill IU, positioned 'as :shown' very'closely to this chambelxu A pair of co-acting U-s'hap'ed sheetmetal ibers 22, 23 (see Figs. LLand' jfisprovidedone on the inner surface ofeachof the :vertical yarms of said inverted IJ-shaped sheet-'metal'member'l I. to serve as opposed guides for thefgrill I0 when the latteris slid in position downward into the central chamber of the broiler.Said U-shaped guide member 22 is fastened by riveting or otherwise tothe member II, as shown. As shown in Fig. 5, said guide member 23 isspaced apart from said member I I to provide room within which theconnections between the two heating wires 2l, 2| and the connectionscrews I8 and I8 are made. Said guide member 23 is held in position bymeans of retaining screws and nuts 24, 24 extending through said memberI I.

To permit said resistance wires 2|, 2| to pass through holes in themember 23 into the connection chamber described above without makingelectrical Contact with said guide member 23, ceramic insulating sleeves25 and 26 are passed over the wire and positioned as shown.

Connected to the connection screws |18 and I8 is a pair of wires 21 and23 which serve to connect said resistance wires 2|, 2| to a source ofelectrical energy through a suitable switch member 29 which may be ofany' convenient form, as shown in the sketches merely in outline.

Said sliding tray 3 (see Fig. 1) is held on the slide supports 2, 2 (seeFig. 2), and is adapted to be drawn in and out by means of a .handle 30.Said sliding tray 3 serves to catch the liquid which may drip from thearticle to be cooked above, between the heating members, and ispreferably made of some material that will not tarnish readily and willnot contaminate these juices,

should if be desirable to use the juices for human consumption.

Said grill I0, shown in Figs. 6 and 7, is constructedin a now well-knownmanner by forming the grill work of suitable wires shapd and welded insome such form as shown in Fig. 6, and comprising two sections 3| and 32hinged together along one edge as shown by the hinges 33, 33. When inthe closed position, these grill members assume the position shown. inFig. 7 by the modified line of section 32, the two members being heldtogether by the latch 35, as shown. One important feature of said grillI0 is a handle I6 which comprises at least in part a substance which isa poor conductor of heat and which is of suiilcient length relative tothe grill as shown particularly in Fig. 2 so that the grill laden withfood and in a hot condition may be conveniently handled without havingthe hand contact with the metallic top part 31 which serves to hold thegrill in position as shown in Fig. 2. When it is extended downwardlyinto the central chamber of the broiler this plate 31 encounters themember 9 and serves to hold the grill up in position.

While broilers of the general type disclosed herein are not new in thebroiling art, especial attention is directed toward the novel provisionin ,this disclosure for directing more heat toin the ordinary broilerwhere no such provisions are 'made that the article tobe broiled becomesoverheated or overcooked toward the upper limits thereof before thelower limits are suiciently cooked. This proper distribution of theheal'l is provided for in the disclosure both by the disposing of theheating elements so that the heat emanates from points nearer thesurface of the foQd toward the bottom than it does toward the ',"top,and, further, by the concentration of heating elements in greater amounttoward the bottom. Obviously, modifications of these arrangements can bemade to attain the same result. For instance, the diameter orcomposition of the resistance wire could be altered so that a greaterresistance is provided toward the bottom to generate the greater heatwith or without having recourse to the modication of the physicaldistribution in the illustration'here given. Furthermore, as abovedescribed, the proper disposition of the reflectors 8, 8 in this broilerwill aid materially in directing the heat toward the bottom of thearticle to be cooked.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim and desire to protectby Letters Patent is:

In a broiler, in combination, two heating elements disposed generallyvertically in co-operative relation to simultaneously radiate heattoward the opposite sides of an article to be cooked and each adapted togenerate a greater .amount of heat at the lower portion thereof than atthe upper portion, and reflecting means in operative relation to saidheating elements to receive radiated heat therefrom and to reect apreponderance of said radiated heat toward the bottom of the article tobe cooked, said reflecting means extending for a substantial distanceabove the upper limits of said heating elements and said heatingelements extending from said upper limits downwardly to limits near thebottom limits of said reflecting means.

ROBERT F. HENDERSHOT. EDWARD R. HUGHES.

